Lock mechanism for safes



(N0 MMU-3L) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

H. GROSS.

LOOK MBGHANISM PoR SMEs.

N0. 315,612. Patented Apr. 14, 1885.

ATTORNEYS (No MoeL) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

H. GRGSS.

LOCK MEGHANISM POR SAPBS. No. 315,612. Y Patented Apr. 14, 1885.

WITNESSES: i 2 o@ wia/1% T I BW? (No Model.) 3 sheets-snapt 3.

H. GROSS. 1.00K MBGHANISM f o SAPES.

No. 315,612. Patented Apr. 14, 1885.

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IINiTnn STATES 'PATENT rines@ HENRY GROSS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

LOCK MECHANISM FOR SAFES.

-TITEON forming part of Letters Patent No. 315,612, dated April 14:, 1885.

AAp-nefaimi nien ,rpm 3, 1834. (No mais.)

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY Gnossa citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invent-ed certain new and useful Improvements in Lock Mechanism for Safes, of which I do ticolare the following to be a full. clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

In the construction ot lock mechanism for the doors of burglar-proof safes or vaults as at present commonly practiced,it is customary to provide the permutation or other suitable look cont-rolling the movement of the bolt-work with a time-lock upon the inside of the safe, which acts as a guard to prevent the operation ot' t-he holt-work otl the safe during apredetermined period and until the time-lock is automaticall y yreleased and ceases to act as a' guard.

In lock mechanism of this description a number of serious difficulties are encountered. For example, it sometimes happens that in setting the timelock the hand ot' the dial or the indicator-pointer is moved too far, and in such case, as this hand cannot be turned back, the safe must necessarily remain locked longer than is desired, thereby occasioning serious inconvenience.

One of the objects of my present invention is to provide means whereby mistakes of this kind can be corrected and the delay in the opening of the safe can be avoided. In the time-locks at present employed it is also customary to provide two separate clock-movements, each with aI tripping device for releasing at the desired time the guard that checks the operation of the bolt-work, so that in case either of said movements stops, the other will release the guard. As these separate clockmovements are independent of cach other, it is necessary to set each separately, and il", through carelessness or accident, one is not set and the other stops, it becomes necessary to drill or break open the sate.

Mypresent invention has for its further obg, ject to provide means whereby thetwo clockmovements can he simultaneously set and will movein unison, so that in case the spring of either movement fails to act that ofthe other movement will with certainty operate the guard-releasing device.

In an invention heretofore made by me, on which a patent was granted ot' the 8th day of February, 1876, provision was made whereby the guard of the time-lock could be brought into action to check the operation of the boltwork at a time subsequent to the setting of the time-lock, so that in case it was desired to use the safe a short time after the setting of the time-lock, as in the evening, the bolt-work could be operated until such hour as the guard of the time-lock should be automaticaily thrown into action. In such construction, however, the two clock-movements were independent of each other, so that in case ot' any accident to the movement that carried the tripping device for automatically bringing the guard into action the time-lock would serve no useful purpose. By the present invention the tripping device that throws the guard of thetime-lock into action at any desired hour subsequent to the setting of such lock, is caused to operate with certainty so iong as either of the clock-movements is effective. Again, in the usual construction of lock meehanism the arborsor spindles of the permutation-lock, and of the knob foroperating the boit-work, extend through the door or walt of the safe and constitute its weakest point, as by knocking otf or driving in or drilling these arbors the burglar obtains a ready opening, through which explosives can be introduced into the sate, or the bolt-work can be moved. To overcome this last difficulty it has been proposed to apply to the inner face of the safe-door lock mechanism the bolts of which shall be shot theinstant the safe-door is eiosethand shall be automaticall retracted at the desired hour by the action of the timeiock. 'Vith this kind otlock mechanism it is evident that the sate, when closed, must `remain locked until such time as the timeloek shall opera-te to re tract the bolts, after which the safe will be open. This form of lock mechanism is noticeably defective in two particulars. In the first place, it is frequently desirable to use the safe in the evening, in which case the time mechanism mustnot come into operation until after such use, a result that cannot be attained by this last-described mechanism without leaving the safe open until the evening, or by set- -ting the time-lock for a short period with the expectation of reset-ting it thereafter. It is ICC evident, however, that neither of these ways of usingpsuch lock mechanism is secure, as it may happen that from some cause no one will return t-o use the safe and set the time-lock, in which event the safe will remain open all night. It will therefore be seen that it is desirable to provide mechanism whereby, without forming any weak point in the door or wall of the safe by running an arborthrough the same, the safe can be locked independently of the time-lock, which shall be automatically thrown into operation to guard thebolt-work at some predetermined time subsequent to its setting, and toaccomplish this is one of thc objects of my present invention.

My invention, therefore, consists in providing improved mechanism whereby the timelock may cease to check the operation of the bolt-work before the expiration of the time for which the time-lock has been set, so that any mistake in setting the time-lock may be thus corrected and all delay in opening the safe by reason of such mistake may be avoided.

My invention further consists in providing mechanism whereby the bolt-work of the safe maybe automatically thrown by the time-lock to lock the safe.

My invention also consists in providing means whereby the bolt-work of the safe may be automatically thrown and retracted by the time-lock to lock and unlock the safe.

My invention also consists in various details of construction, which will be hereinafter described, and particularly pointed out in the claims at the end of this specification.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a View in elevation of a time-lock of my improved construction. Fig. 2 is a similar view of the time-lock, a portion of the top plate vbeing broken away, and the plate or disk that carries the tripping devices being removed for better illustration of subjacent parts. Fig. 3 is a view in horizontal longitudinal section on linea: x of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a view in longitudinal vertical section on line y y of Fig. 3, showing in inverted elevation the mechanism on the under side of the top plate. Fig. 5 is also a sectional view on line y y of Fig. 3, showing in elevation the mechanism on the face of the bottom plate. Fig. t'rL is .an enlarged sectional view in detail of the plate carrying the tripping devices. Fig. 6 is a view in elevation of the inner face of the safe door and frame having my improved time-lock mechanism applied thereto, parts being broken away for better` illustration. Fig. 7 is a view in horizontal section on line x a: of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a view in elevation of the inner side of 'a portion of a safe door and frame, parts being broken away, and parts being shown in section. Fig. 9 is a detail front view (somewhat enlarged) of the time-lock in connection with the parts directly operated thereby. Fig.

10 is a view in elevation of a somewhat modified-form of time-lock, a part of the top plate being broken away, and the plate that carries the, tripping devices being removed. Fig. 11

lards a.

`plate revolves. guard M is furnished upon its inner side with.

is a plan view of -this last form of time-lock detached. f

In Fig. l my improved time-lock is shown,-

as applied in connection with a permutationlock, and in Figs. 6, 8, and 9, in connection with mechanism that co-operates therewith to automatically shoot and retract the bolt-work of the safe.

A designates the top plate, and A the bottom plate, of the time-lock, these plates being suitably connected together by posts or stand- In this time-lock two distinct clockmovements are employed, and these movements are provided-with driving-springs B and C, that serve, respectively, to operate the indicator-pointer or dial-hand and the tripping devices for controlling the guard of the time-lock. The driving-springs are covered, as shown, by the caps b and c, attached to the under side of the bottom plate.

rIo the springs B and C are connected the driving-arbors B and C', that pass through the top and bottom plates, A and A', and have loosely held thereon the gear-wheels b and c',

that will be placed in gear with suitable escapement mechanism and will receive movement from their. driving-arbors through the medium of the ratchet-wheels b2 and c2 and ratchets b3 and c3, inmanner well known in the art.

To the arbor B is keyed the ring D, having an arm, d, adapted to strike the stud e on the under side of the gear-wheel E, that has an extended hub, e', passing through the top plate, A, and fitting loosely on the arbor BC The reduced upper portion of the hub e is squared and receives the washer e2 and t-he indicator-pointer F, which, in connection with the hour-dial F', serves to determine the length of time for which the lock shall be set.

rIhe drivingarbor vC is provided with a ring, G, having an arm, g, adapted to strike the stud h, depending from the face of the gearwheel H, the extended hub h of which passes through the top plate` A, tits loosely on the arbor O', and is provided with a squared end that carries the slotted revolving plate or disk I, that sustains the tripping devices K and L for throwing the guard M of the time-lock respectively into and out of operation.

The tripping device K, which serves to throw the guard M out of action, is adj ustably held beneath the circular slot i of the plate I by means of the threaded shank ik, which passes through the slot, and is furnished with the small clamp-nut k', by which the tripping device may be fixed at any desired point along the slot, its position being determined by the scale or dial at the side thereof. The guard M is pivotally held on the top plate, A, by means of the journal screw or pin M', and is provided `with the lug or shoulder m that extends a sufficient distance beneath the plate I to be struck by the tripping device K as the The lower portion of the a lug, (shown in dotted lines, Figs. 1 and 2,)

TIO

which,` when the guard is swung downward, I

will catch beneath the stud a oi' the pivoted latch bar or lever N, that is provided with the angle-bar n', adapted to drop into the ordinary/notched tumblers of a permutationlock. rihe latch N is slotted, as shown, to receive the pin o of the driving-lever O,by which movement is imparted from the drive-wheel O' to the bolt-work ofthe permutation-lock.

Beneath the circular slot t of the plate I the tripping device L, which thi'ows the guard M into operation to check the bolt-work, is held by means of its threaded shank l, which extends through the slot and is provided with the clamp-nut t', that retains this tripping device at any desired position along the slot.

Pivotally connected to the top plate, A, is the dog or pawl P, the rear end of which is provided upon its upper side with. the camfaced lug p, that projects beneath the slot t", and in position to he struck by the tripping device L as the plate revolves-` The forward end, p', of the pawl is held by the spring p2 normally in position to engage with the shoulder m of the guard, and serves to temporarily retain the guard in a retracted position, so that it will not affect the operation of the boltwork until the pawl is released by the tripping device L striking the lugp. A knob, p3, projecting from the face of the pawl P, serves to retract this pawl by hand, as will hereinafter appear.

Between the gear-wheels E and H and meshingtherewith is placed thegear-wheel H', keyed to the winding-post IP, journaled in the top and bottom plates, and having asquared projecting end, over which the winding-key will lit. By means of this gear-wheel the two clock-movements are caused to work in unison, and are simultaneously wound and set.

The operation of the mechanism thus far defined is as follows: Let it first be assumed that the tripping devices K and L are at the zero-points of their respective slots i' and i', that the indicator-pointer is at the zero-point of its hour-dial, and that the guard Mis turned down so that its lug catches under the stud n ofthe latch-bar N, and holds the same suspended and the bolt-work out of operation. Il, new, a winding-key be applied to the post H and be turned toward the left, the driving-springs of the two.clock-movements will be wound and the indicator pointer F and plate I may be simultaneously set for the desired number of hours. rlhe indicator-pointer and the plate will then-move in the direction of the arrows, Figs. l, until the tripping device K strikes the lug or shoulder m of the guard M, and causes this guard to swing backward, so that the latch-bar N will be released and the bolt-work of the permutation-lock can be operated. At this time the indicatorpointer will have returned to the Zero-point of the hour-dial.

It is evident that it' the tripping device K is moved forward in the slot t of the plate I and there clamped, it will strike the shoulder dicator-pointer has by mistake been turned' too far it is only necessary in order to correct such mistake to move forward the tripping device K a distance in the slot t' corresponding to the number of hours the indicator-pointer has been overset. For example, if it is desired to close the safe at three oclock in the afternoon, so that it cannot be opened until nine o clock the following morning, the indicatorpointer should be turned to the point 18 on the hour-dial, but, if through mistake it has been turned too far-as to the 24: point-the mistake can be readily corrected, and the delay in opening the safe can he avoided by xing the tripping device K at a position in its slot@ opposite thepoint 6" ofthe slot-scale,as by this means the tripping device will throw back the guard M six hours sooner than were it in at the zero-point of the slot, and hence in eighteen hours afterthe time the time-movement started.

If it is desired that the time-lock shall autoinutically come into operation to check the bolt-work at a time subsequent to the setting ot' the tiine-lock-i'or example, if it is desired to close the safe at three o clock in the afternoon and have the time-lock automatically come into operation at nine oclock in the evening, the bolt-work of the permutationlock being unchecked in the interim-the indicator-pointer will be set` as usual, for the hour at which the safe is to be opened the next morning, but the guard M will be swung back and held by pawl P, as shown in` Figs. l and 2, and the tripping device L will be moved forward and fixed at such point in the slot il that at six hours after the starting of the clock-movement it will strike the cam-lug p, and by so doing will release the pawl P and allow the guard M to swing forward to catch the stud n ofthe latch-bar, and thus check the IOC) operation ot' the bolt-work until the guard is forced backward by the tripping device K at the end of the period for which the time-lock has been set.

In Fig. l of the drawings the guard M is shown as held back by the pawl P, the indicater-pointer has been set for twenty two hours, the tripping device K is fixed in its slot opposite the point 4, and the tripping device L is fixed in its slot opposite the point 16. With the parts in this position (assuming the clock-work to start at three p. m.) the bolt-work of the permutation-lock will remain free until the tripping device L strikes the lu g p and allows the guard IWI to swing forward,

`(which will occur at eleven p. in.,) and will then remain checked by the guard until the tripping device K throws back the guard at nine oclock in the morning, or four hours earlier than the time for which the indicatorpoint was set.

In Figs. 6 to il of the drawings my invention is shown as applied for automatically throwing and withdrawing the bolt-work of a safe.

R designates the front wall of the safe, and

AR denotes the door, upon the inner face of which is the usual frame, r, for sustaining the bolt-Work, consisting of the bolts Rconnected together by the tie-plate R3. Upon the inner face of this tie-plate are formed the bearingflanges 1"', through which passes the sliding rod S,that carries the coiled springs S and S2, and is loosely held in a suitable seat in the boltframe r and the bearing-'sleeve s that is'bolted to the door. A hand-lever, T, pivotally held upon a stud, t, and connected to the rear end of the rod S by the pin t', serves to move forward the rod, and it will be seen that as this rod is forced forward by the action of the hand-lever, the pin s bearing upon the spring S2 tends to compress this spring, while at the Same time the pin s'2 of the rod bearing upon the end of the spring S forces the same against the rear iiange r of the tie-plate, and tends to force this tie-plate and its connected bolt-work forward. Upon the vinner face of the tie-plate is formed a stop or lug, r3, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 6 and full lines in Fig. 8, and this stop is so placed upon the tie-plate as to catch against the square shoulder u of the pivoted trigger or stop-lever U when the latter is in elevated position, as shown in Fig. 6. If, therefore, the trigger be elevated at the time the sliding rod Sis thrust forward by the handlever T, the spring S2 will be pressed by the pin s against the frame-work mand the spring S2 will be pressed by the pin s2 against the rear iiange r of the tie-plate as this tie is prevented from moving forward by the resistance of the trigger, and the only effect of the sliding rod under such condition will be to compress the springs without moving the boltwork.

Pivotally connected to the door at the point c is the releasing-lever V, the short arm of which rests upon the arm u', projecting from the trigger U, and the long arm of which projects within the path traversed by the tripping device L of the time-lock. From this construction it will appear that if, after the springs S and S2 have been compressed by the sliding rod S, as Ajust above described, thentripping device L strikes the lever V, it .will force the long arm of this lever upwardwhich will in turn depress the trigger U, thereby causing it to release the tie-plate R3 and allow the compressed spring S to force the bolt-work forward to automatically lock the safe.

At asuitable point, as w on the door is pivoted the latch-bar W, the free end of which is provided with the small friction-roller w', adapted to bear against the bottom edge of the time-lock guard M when the latter is in position to check the operation of the boltwork after it has been thrown forward.

Upon the under side of the latch-bar W is the depending lug 102, the inclined face of lug on the inner side of the guard and the rear end of the pawl P and its lug are dispensed with as unnecessary in this construction, although it will be readily understood that the form of lock having such features may be employed in both cases.

The operation of this last-described timelock lmechanism is as follows: Let it be assumed that the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 6, the safe-door being shut andlocked by an independent permutation jam-lock, to be presently described, the indicator-pointer F and the revolving plate I will turn backward in the direction of the arrows. The tripping device L will, after a predetermined period, depending upon its position in thel slot z", strike the end of theA releasing-lever V, which in turn will depress the trigger U, thereby allowing the compressed spring S to shoot the bolt-workto lock the safe, and bringing the front flange r of the tie-plate R3 against the pin s ofthe sliding rod, as seen in Fig. 8.

The bolt-work remains thus in its forward position until the tripping deviceK of the timelock strikes the lug m and releases the guard M, at which moment the compressed spring S2 will force backward the sliding rod S, (no longer held by the lug w2 of the latch-bar,) which will carry with it the bolt-work, and hence leave the safe free to be opened save for the permutation jam-lock. It will be seen Ythat by this last-describedv mechanism the main bolt-work can be automatically thrown forward to lock the safe at any desired hour subsequent to the setting of the time-lock, and after remaining guarded for a predetermined periodv can be automatically withdrawn to unlock the safe. The advantages of this construction have been hereinbefore set out.

Thejam-loek, forming as it does the subjectmatter of another application for Letters Patent tiled of even date herewith, needs be but briey described here. It consists, essentially, of a series of tumblers, X, of usual construction, carried by the casing zr, that is removably held within a'suitable recess of the door-jam of the safe. To the casing x is pivoted, as at y, the bolt-plate Y, which is provided with the angle bar or catch y', adapted to enter the notches of the tumblers andthe notch of the drive-wheel z, formed on the'end of the tapering arbor ofthe dial-knob Z. The bolt-plate Y, when thrown forward by the drive-wheel, enters the space 12, formed in the front edge of the safe-door, and securely locks this door. arbor of this permutation-lock does not extend through the wall ofthe safe, and Vhence an It will be noticed that the opening moving themain bolt-work cannot be obtained by drilling the arbor, as is possible with safes having arbors extending through the wall.

In order to provide a` tighter joint between.

the rear edge of the safe-door and the frame, so as to prevent the introduction of explosives, I forni a long groove, 1;, in the inner face of the door near its rear edge, and a like groove in the inner face of the door-frame, into which grooves will snugly fit the ianged edges 2 and 3 of the protecting-plate 4, pressed normally outward by the ilat springs, shown in dotted lines. A retaining-plate, 5, sustained by the screws G, bears against the rear portion of the plate 4, and holds the flange 2 within its slot. On the rear ends of the bolts It2 are formed the cam-lugs 7, which, when the bolt-worlris shot, will bear upon the forward portion of the plate Li and force the iiange 3 into the groove l. In this position the protectingplate 4 covers the joint between the rear edge of the safe-door and the door-frame, and will securely guard against the introduction of explosives through such joint into the safe.

It is obvious that the details of construction above set ont may be varied within wide limits without departing from the spirit of my invention, and that some of the features of the invention may be employed without the others or in connection with other forms of lock mechanism. I wish it distinctly understood, therefore, that the scope of my invention is notrestricted either to the details of construction or arrangement above set out.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In a time-loch i'or safes, the combination, with a guard for checking the operation of the bolt-work and a suitable.indicator-pointer, of a revolving adjustable tripping device for releasing said guard, and gear-wheels connecting said tripping device with the pointer, substantially as described.

2. In atime-lock for safes, the combination, with a guard for checking the operation of the bolt-work and a suitable indicator-pointer, of a revolving plate-in gear with said pointer and a tripping device for releasing the guard adjustably held in said plate, substantially as described.

3. In a time-lock for safes, the combination, with a guard for checking the operation of the bolt-work, of an indicator-pointer, a slotted revolving plate in gear with said pointer, a tripping device for releasing said guard, and means, substantially as described, for adjusting the tripping device at different points along the slot of said plate, substantially as set forth.

4. In atinie-locl; for safes, the combination, with a guard 'for checking the operation of the bolt-work, of an indicator-pointer, adriving-spring for said pointer, a tripping device for releasing the guard in gear with said pointer, and a separate driving spring for for the introduction of explosives or i said tripping device, substantially as described.

5. In a time-lock for safes, the combination,

with a guard for checking the operation of y the bolt-work, of an indicator-pointer, a driving-spring for said pointer, a tripping device in gear with said pointer, a separate spring for said tripping device, and a key-post conimon to both the pointer and tripping device whereby they 'may be simultaneously set, substantially as described.

6. In a time-lock for safes, the combination, with a guard for checking the operation of the bolt-work, of an indicator-pointer,asupplemental adjustable tripping device or catch for throwing the guard into action, and gearwheels connecting said tripping device with the indicator pointer, substantially as described.

7. In a time-lock for safes, the combination, with a guard for checking the operation of the bolt-work, of a dog for holding said guard temporarily out of action, an adjustable supplemental tripping device for throwing the dog out of engagement. with the guard, a main tripping device for throwing the guard out of action, a driving-spring for said tripping devices, and an indicator-pointer and gear-wheels connecting said tripping devices with the pointer, substantially as described.

8. In a time-lock for safes, the combination, with a guard for checking the operation of the bolt-work, of a dog or pawl for temporavrily holding said guard out of action, an indicator-pointer, a supplemental tripping device for throwing the dog out of engagement with the guard having asupporting-post separate from that of the indicator-pointer, a main tripping device for throwing the guard out of action, and gear-wheels connecting the tripping devices and the pointer, substantiall y as described.

9. In a time-lock, the combination, with a guard for checking the operation of the boltwork and an indicator-pointer, of a dog or pawl i'or holding the guard temporarily out of action, an adjustable supplemental tripping device for throwing the dog out of engagementwith the guard, a main tripping device for throwing the guard out of action, and a revolving plate or disk for carrying said tripping devices, substantially as described.

l0. In a time-lock for safes, the combination, with a guard for checking the operation of the bolt-work and a dog for holding said guard out of action, of a single indicatorpointer, a revolving plate having two slots therein, two tripping devices-one for the guard and one for the dog-adjustably held in said slots, two clock-movements, and gearwheels for connecting said pointer and revolving plate, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

11. In time -lock mechanism for safes, the combination, with the main bolt-work of the safe, of mechanism for throwing the main bolt-work to lool; the safe and clock mechan- IOS ism for automatically releasing said yboltjy throwing mechanism, substantially as described.

12. In tinie-lock mechanism for safes, the combination, with the bolt-work, of a spring for throwing said bolt-work to lock thesafe, a trigger or stop for temporarily restraining the action of said spring, and a tripping device operated by suitable clock-work to release said trigger and automatically lock the safe, substantially as set forth.

13. In time-lock mechanism for safes, the combination, with the bolt-work, of a spring for automatically throwing said bolt-work to lock the safe, a spring for automatically withdrawing the bolt-work to unlock the safe, a trigger or stop for temporarily restraining the action of said locking-spring, a guard for vtemporarily checking the action of the un- 

